“When she moved here, she was singing in local talent contests, church functions, anything she could find at that point," says executive director Judy Sue Huyett-Kempf.

Each room in the house contains something that belonged to Cline: a teapot in the dining room; a quilt made by her mother in the bedroom; a pair of red chairs in the kitchen. An end table and lamp in the parlor were once in Cline's Nashville home.

Other furnishings reflect memories Patricia Brannon had of the home. Cline's first cousin, was six years younger than the singer and sometimes gives tours of the house. Brannon visited frequently as a child in the late 1940s.

She is pleased that Winchester is finally honoring her cousin. “They all said that she was born on the wrong side of town. But when they purchased the house and restored it, I think that was one of the best things that happened.”

Cline died in a plane crash at the age of 30 and was buried in Winchester. Her grave has attracted visitors for years. But Huyett-Kempf, who was behind the fundraising efforts to establish a Patsy Cline Museum in Winchester, says fans have been waiting for this recognition.

They purchased the house about five years ago, but continued to look for a site for a museum. "Then it dawned on us," she says. "This is the Patsy history. This is it, where she walked, where she ate, where she slept."

Because the house is so small, only 20 visitors can tour at a time. In the first five days, Huyett-Kempf says, they had more than 600 people.

The Babe Ruth Birthplace and Museum has artifacts tracing the sports star's career, including bats, like this one, used during his 1927 record-breaking season.

Birthplace of baseball legend

Babe Ruth was born in a working class neighborhood in Baltimore, Maryland, on February 6, 1895.

He's idolized as one of the best baseball players ever and the first sports superstar, according to Mike Gibbons, executive director of the Babe Ruth Birthplace and Museum.

“He is the first guy who ever had a sports agent. He is the first guy who was used to promote retail goods.”

Ruth’s birthplace, which was scheduled to be demolished in the 1960s, was rescued and restored by Baltimore residents and has been open to the public for almost 40 years.

“With this house, we give them plenty of opportunities to touch where Babe Ruth walked around," Gibbons says, "He did not live here, but this was his grandparents’ house, so he was in and out of this house for the first seven years of his life.”

The bedroom where Ruth was born and the front parlor have been furnished as they were when his grandparents lived here.

And because the city saved three adjoining houses as well, there's room for artifacts tracing Ruth’s life, from his first mitt, used in childhood baseball games, to his early career in Baltimore, and beyond to celebrity.

Curator Jeff Jerome stands outside of the house where Edgar Allan Poe lived while he was in Baltimore.

Edgar Allan Poe's home endangered

The oldest house in Baltimore is a narrow, two-story, brick building surrounded by low-income housing. Back in the early 1830s, it was home to Edgar Allan Poe, one of America’s most famous writers.

Poe is mostly known for his scary stories and poems.

“He was around 25 years old at the time he lived here," says Jeff Jerome, curator of the Edgar Allan Poe House. "He shared this small house with his two cousins, Henry and Virginia, his aunt Maria Clemm and his grandmother.”

Poe’s attic bedroom is furnished as historians believe it was when the writer lived there. “He probably had a bed, very similar to the one that we have. He had a chair, a washstand, and maybe a small table.”

More objects are on display in other rooms. A telescope and china from his boyhood home in Richmond and, in the front parlor, a chair that belonged to the writer. There isn’t room for much else.

But, as Jerome points out, that hasn’t stopped people from travelling great distances to visit the house.

“We had a young lady, 16 years old, that came here from China with her father and she said she was a poet," Jerome recalls. "Her father said, ‘We came to America to visit Poe’s grave and his house.’”

According to Jerome, the visitors had no interest in travelling 30 minutes south to visit Washington, D.C. Their sole reason for coming to the U.S. was to pay homage to Poe.

The curator says he hears that lot from people who tour the house. But next summer if they come, they may find the door locked.

“The city of Baltimore cut funding to the Poe house. We are now surviving off of funds that I have raised through the Poe Birthday celebration and Halloween at the Poe House," Jerome says.

The budget year ends in June 2012. Jerome hopes someone will step forward before the money runs out, so that the house can be kept open to the public.

At this year's annual South by Southwest film and music festival in Austin, Texas, some musicians from Mali were on hand to promote a film about how their lives were upturned by jihadists who destroyed ancient treasures in the city of Timbuktu and prohibited anyone from playing music under threat of death. As VOA’s Greg Flakus reports from Austin, some are afraid to return to their hometowns even though the jihadists are no longer in control there.

Video

At this year's annual South by Southwest film and music festival in Austin, Texas, some musicians from Mali were on hand to promote a film about how their lives were upturned by jihadists who destroyed ancient treasures in the city of Timbuktu and prohibited anyone from playing music under threat of death. As VOA’s Greg Flakus reports from Austin, some are afraid to return to their hometowns even though the jihadists are no longer in control there.

Video

American warplanes joined Iraq's battle against the so-called 'Islamic State' in northern Iraq late Wednesday, as Iraqi ground troops launched a massive assault on Tikrit. Analysts say the offensive could take the coalition a step further towards Mosul, the largest city held by Islamic State forces. Others say it could also deepen already-dangerous sectarian tensions in the region. VOA's Heather Murdock has more from Cairo.

Video

Tourism is a multi-billion dollar industry in the Philippines. Close to five million foreign visitors traveled there last year, perhaps lured by the country’s tropical beaches. But Jason Strother reports from Manila that the country hopes to entice more travelers to stay indoors and spend money inside new casinos.

Video

The continued fighting in eastern Ukraine and the shelling of civilian neighborhoods seem to be pushing more men to join the separatist fighters. Many of the new recruits are residents of Ukraine made bitter by new grievances, as well as old. VOA's Patrick Wells reports.

Video

Islamic State fighter, a prisoner of Kurdish YPG forces, asked his family asking for forgiveness: "I destroyed myself and I destroyed them along with me." The Syrian youth was one of two detainees who spoke to VOA’s Kurdish Service about the path they chose; their names have been changed and identifying details obscured. VOA's Zana Omer reports.

Video

More is being discovered about the co-pilot in the crash of Germanwings Flight 9525 in the French Alps. Investigators say he was hiding a medical condition, raising questions about the mental qualifications of pilots. VOA's Carolyn Presutti reports.

Video

In cities with heavily congested traffic, people can get around much faster on a motorcycle than in a car. But a rider who is not sure of his route may have to stop to look at the map or consult a GPS. A Russian start-up company is working to make navigation easier for motorcyclists. Designers at Moscow-based LiveMap are developing a smart helmet with a built-in navigation system, head-mounted display and voice recognition. Zlatica Hoke has more.

Video

U.S. federal law enforcement agents arrested two suburban Chicago men accused of trying to join ISIS overseas, while also plotting attacks in the United States. As VOA’s Kane Farabaugh reports from the Midwest state of Illinois, one of those arrested is a soldier of the Illinois National Guard.

Video

Traditional push-rim wheelchairs create a lot of stress for arm, shoulder and neck muscles and joints. A redesigned chair, based on readily available bicycle technology, radically increases mobility while reducing the physical effort. VOA’s George Putic reports.

Video

Beatrice Yardolo was to make history as Liberia’s last Ebola patient. Liberians recently started counting down 42 days, the period that has to go by without a single new infection until the World Health Organization can declare a country Ebola-free. That countdown stopped on March 20 when there was another new case of Ebola, making Yardolo’s story a reminder that Ebola is far from over. Benno Muchler reports from Monrovia.

Video

Indigenous communities in Cambodia's Ratanakiri province say the government’s economic land concession policy is taking away their land and traditional way of life, making many fear that their identity will soon be lost. Local authorities, though, have denied this is the case. VOA's Say Mony went to investigate and filed this report, narrated by Colin Lovett.

Video

One of the films that drew big crowds last week at the annual South by Southwest festival in Austin, Texas, tells the story of the last human being to stand on the moon, U.S. astronaut Eugene Cernan. It has been 42 years since Cernan returned from the moon and he laments that no one else has gone there since. VOA’s Greg Flakus reports.